UPDATE 1-Neiman Q1 profit triples on higher luxury spending

* Q1 profit $25.7 mln vs $8.5 mln yr ago

* Sales up 7 pct to $927.2 mln

Dec 8 (Reuters) - Neiman Marcus Group Inc's [NMRCUS.UL] quarterly profit nearly tripled as it benefited from continued gains in luxury spending.

The operator of Neiman Marcus and Bergdorf Goodman stores reported net income of $25.7 million for the August-October quarter, compared with $8.5 million a year earlier.

Revenue at Neiman, which was bought by an investor group led by private equity firm TPG Capital [TPG.UL] and Warburg Pincus LLC [WP.UL] in October 2005, rose 7 percent to $927.2 million.

Other upscale companies such as Saks Inc (SKS.N), Nordstrom Inc (JWN.N) and Tiffany & Co Inc (TIF.N) have similarly reported strong gains this autumn as well-heeled shoppers spend more on high-end designer clothes and jewelry. (Reporting by NR Sethuraman in Bangalore and Phil Wahba in New York; Editing by Unnikrishnan Nair)